POWER SOLUTIONS INTERNATIONAL, INC. (PSIX): what the price assumes

In the published model solve dated 2026-Q2, anchored at $33.10, POWER SOLUTIONS INTERNATIONAL, INC. (PSIX) is priced for today's economics sustained for ~6.7 years. boothcheck publishes no house fair value, target price, or buy/sell rating; individual model outputs and user-controlled scenarios are analytical inputs, not Boothcheck targets. Narrative composed 2026-06-27.

Generated: 2026-08-10 · Exported: 2026-08-12 · Source: https://boothcheck.com/report/PSIX

Headline

FieldValue
TickerPSIX
CompanyPOWER SOLUTIONS INTERNATIONAL, INC.
Current price$33.10/sh
CompositionPower Systems 81% / Industrial 16% / Transportation 3%

What The Price Assumes (Inversion)

The assumption today's price embeds, recovered by inverting the valuation.

FieldValue
Inversion basiswhole-company
Operating margin (value-band context)5.1%
Operating margin today13.5%
Margin compression (value-band)-8.4pp
Must persist for6.7y
Multiple paid9x operating income

The operating-margin figure is value-band context at year 11: derived from the framework's value band, a separate calculation — not part of the priced-in solve.

Solve inputs: computed at a 16.5% cost of capital; growth searched up to the 25.6% self-funding ceiling; each 1pp moves the implied horizon ~1.8 years.

How unusual the bet is: elevated

ReferenceValue
vs own history+0.25σ
cohort percentile (of 221 peers)3
sustained it ~6.7 years at this level22%
implied end-window share0%

Valuation X-Ray

The price is supported by asset-based and relative-multiple and growth-DCF value, while earnings-power lands below the price. A value/asset-supported name, not a pure growth bet.

How the valuation models price the stock relative to the market price. Price/FV above 1.0 means the market pays more than that lens defends (expensive); at or below 1.0 the lens can defend the price.

FamilyMedian price/FVModelsReads
Asset0.69x5justifies
Earnings1.90x5expensive
Relative0.43x5justifies
Growth0.69x3justifies

Families that justify the price: Asset, Relative, Growth Families that call it expensive: Earnings

The models below discount at their own flat-beta convention rates (cost of equity 9.3%, WACC 8.6%); the inversion above states its own rate.

Per-Model Detail (n=18)

ModelFamilyFVPrice/FVApplicableMethodology
DCF Perpetual GrowthGrowth$69.410.48xyesFCF base $0.0B, growth 25% (input: historical growth), terminal g 4.0%, WACC 8.6%, 7yr projection
DCF Exit MultipleGrowth$46.270.72xyesExit EV/EBITDA: 5.0x / 8.0x / 11.0x (bear / base = today's held flat / bull), 7yr
Relative ValuationRelative$61.610.54xyesP/E 13.79x (blended: static sector reference 18x + trailing (TTM) 7x), scenarios: 11.0x / 13.8x / 16.5x (bear / base = reference held flat / bull), EV/EBITDA 12x
Simple DDMGrowthno
Two-Stage DDMGrowthno
Simple Excess ReturnAsset$47.910.69xyesBV/sh $8.06, ROE (TTM) 55.0%, ke 9.3%
Two-Stage Excess ReturnAsset$149.860.22xyes5yr excess ROE then converge to ke=9.3%
Discounted Future Market CapGrowth$48.030.69xyesRev $0.7B, growth 30% (input: historical growth; tapered), Terminal P/S: 0.9x / 1.1x / 1.3x (bear / base = today's held flat / bull, cap 12x)
Peter Lynch Fair ValueRelative$114.120.29xyesEPS $4.43, growth 26% (input: historical EPS growth), PEG=0.29 (Undervalued)
Margin TrajectoryGrowthno
Earnings Power ValueEarnings$17.441.90xyesNormalized EBIT (5y avg op income, one-time charges added back) $0.05B × (1−25%) / WACC 8.6% → EPV (no growth)
Residual IncomeAsset$78.150.42xyesBV $8.06 + 5yr PV of (ROE (TTM) 55.0% − Kₑ 9.3%) × BV; BV grows 8.8%/yr
Graham NumberAsset$28.341.17xyes√(22.5 × EPS $4.43 × BVPS $8.06) — Graham's conservative floor
EV/EBITDA RelativeRelative$49.870.66xyesEBITDA $0.10B × sector EV/EBITDA 12.0x
FCF YieldEarnings$15.072.20xyesFCF $34.4M / Kₑ 9.3% — zero-growth perpetuity
SBC-Adj FCF YieldEarnings$14.742.25xyesSBC-adj FCF $0.03B (FCF $0.03B − SBC $0.00B) capitalized at Kₑ
Ben Graham FormulaEarnings$142.940.23xyesEPS $4.43 × (8.5 + 2×15.0%) × (4.4 / 5.3%)
ROIC-Justified P/BAsset$3.798.73xyesBV $8.06 × (ROIC 4.1% / WACC 8.6%)
P/Sales SectorRelative$77.560.43xyesRevenue $0.72B × sector P/S 2.5x
PEG Fair ValueRelative$166.130.20xyesEPS $4.43 × (PEG 1.5 × growth 25.0% (input: historical EPS growth)) → PE 37.5x
Earnings YieldEarnings$47.890.69xyesEPS $4.43 / required return 9.3% (Rf 4.3% + ERP 5.0%)
Funds From Operations MultipleRelativeno
Clinical Phase NPVGrowthno
MertonAssetno
V5 Mechanicalno

Economic-Unit Decomposition (Sum Of The Parts)

Only one reportable economic unit is present in the current topology source. Consolidated operating lenses remain available, but there is no multi-unit decomposition.

UnitRoleValuation basisRevenueReported profitValue evidenceStatus
Power Solutions International (consolidated)operatingenterprise0.7B reported-currencywithheldunresolved no unit value

No total common-equity value is stated. One or more material units lack a supported unit value. The displayed values are an indicative subtotal; consolidated debt and cash cannot be applied to a fraction of the company.

Solvency

FieldValue
Net debt$60.5m
Net debt / NOPAT (after-tax)0.84x
Net debt / operating income (pre-tax)0.63x
Interest coverage14.4x
Share count CAGR (dilution)0.1%
Burning cashno

Bullet Takeaways

Bull Case

Valuing an engine maker is tricky because the end markets are cyclical and lumpy, so a single quarter tells you little about the through-cycle earnings power. That is the lens that matters for Power Solutions International. The business sells power systems, with industrial and transportation lines alongside, and roughly 81% of revenue sits in Power Systems. Demand is shifting in the company's favor: the 10-K points to "stringent regulations and growing efforts to reduce emissions" that are "driving demand for clean energy and alternatives to diesel power engines" along with "microgrids and demand response equipment" (FY2025 10-K, accession 0001628280-26-013207). A company positioned in cleaner stationary power, at the moment data centers are scrambling for on-site generation, is fishing where the fish are.

The value case is grounded in the numbers, not a story. At about 11 times operating income, the asset frame, the relative-multiple frame, and the growth-DCF all support the price; only earnings-power reads it as expensive. The current operating margin is a healthy 13.5%, and the inversion implies the company only needs to hold modest margins for about seven years to justify the price, a pace within what it has recently delivered. The reasonable-growth band centers near $26 with a high around $38, so the current price sits in the upper part of its own fair band rather than miles above it. For a profitable cyclical with a real product and real engineering, that is a reasonable place to be paying.

The balance sheet gives the company the staying power a cyclical needs. Net debt is well under one times operating income, and interest coverage runs above 12 times, so a soft first half does not threaten the business. The 10-K describes a customer base of OEMs and "direct end-users across a wide range of applications that demand high product quality, best-in-class engineering support and on-time delivery" (accession 0001628280-26-013207). That engineering-led positioning is what lets the company win the larger Power Systems orders management expects in the second half. If data-center and industrial demand firm as guided, the earnings recover off a low base and the value case pays off.

Bear Case

The advantage Power Solutions has been leaning on, exposure to booming power demand, is more fragile than the headline suggests, and the first quarter showed where the erosion starts. Revenue fell 5% year over year to $128.6 million, well short of the roughly $164 million expected, and profit dropped 62% as margins compressed. The causes are telling: a lower mix of oil and gas products plus elevated production costs from ramping capacity for data-center applications in Wisconsin. In other words, the business that was supposed to be the growth driver is costing margin to build out, while the legacy oil and gas demand that has been carrying the company is uneven.

That oil and gas dependence is the real concentration risk. The 10-K discloses that "$193.9 million and $105.5 million of its 2025 and 2024 net sales, respectively, were attributable to the sale of products used within the oil and gas industry" (FY2025 10-K, accession 0001628280-26-013207). A swing that large in one cyclical end market is the swing factor for the whole company, and it is outside management's control. Data-center orders are described as uneven, so the narrative that one secular tailwind cleanly replaces a volatile one is not yet proven by the order book. A company whose growth story depends on lumpy large orders is a company whose quarters will keep surprising.

The moat is also thinner than an established engine brand might imply. The company competes on "high product quality, best-in-class engineering support and on-time delivery" (accession 0001628280-26-013207), but it sells into markets where much larger, better-capitalized engine and generator makers operate, and where buyers can dual-source. The emissions-driven shift toward cleaner power is a tailwind for the category, not a proprietary advantage for this company specifically. With the price already supported only by the more optimistic valuation frames and earnings-power flagging it as expensive, a second-half recovery that slips, or another quarter of capacity-ramp drag, would remove the cushion quickly. The stock is priced for the recovery to arrive, not to be delayed.

Valuation

Power Solutions is best read as a cyclical industrial valued near the value end of the spectrum. At about $40 the price is roughly 11 times company-wide operating income, which inverts to growth held at a self-funding ceiling for about seven years, computed at a 15.6% cost of capital. The high discount rate reflects the volatility of the end markets. The current operating margin is a solid 13.5%, and the inversion only requires modest margins to persist, so the bet is on duration of decent profitability rather than on a sharp acceleration.

The family spread marks this as asset-supported, not a growth story. The asset frame, the relative-multiple frame, and the growth-DCF all sit at or below the current price and effectively support it, while the earnings-power frame reads the price as expensive. That mix is typical for a profitable cyclical at a point in the cycle: the no-growth earnings floor looks light because earnings are depressed, while the asset value and peer multiples carry the valuation. The reasonable-growth band runs from a low near $19 to a base around $26 and a high near $38, which places the current price above the base but inside the upper band.

The honest framing is that a buyer here is paying a fair-to-full price for a cyclical whose near-term earnings have just stumbled. The balance sheet is sound, with low leverage and strong interest coverage, so the risk is to earnings and the multiple rather than to solvency. The price assumes the second-half recovery management has guided arrives and that data-center demand becomes a durable contributor rather than a lumpy one. That is a reasonable bet at this multiple, but it is a bet on a recovery, and the methods give limited support above the current level if the recovery disappoints.

Catalysts

The near-term setup is a recovery story management has put on the calendar. First-quarter 2026 results, reported May 11, missed badly: revenue of $128.6 million was down 5% year over year and well short of the roughly $164 million expected, EPS of $0.36 missed the $0.75 estimate, and profit fell 62% on margin compression. Management guided second-quarter revenue to be roughly consistent with the first quarter and pointed to stronger second-half sales, approximately in line with the second half of 2025, driven by larger Power Systems orders. The next two earnings reports are the tests of whether that back-half recovery materializes.

The data-center theme is the swing catalyst. The company is ramping capacity in Wisconsin to serve data-center power applications, and the timing and size of those orders will determine whether the secular demand story translates into earnings. Watch the order book and any large contract announcements, since the business is driven by lumpy large orders rather than steady run-rate demand. Firming oil and gas activity would also help, given how much of the revenue base sits there.

The risks run through the same channels. Oil and gas made up a large share of 2025 sales, so a downturn in that end market hits results directly. Data-center orders have been uneven, so a delay pushes the recovery out. Capacity-ramp costs are pressuring margins now and could persist if volumes do not show up to absorb them. For a small-cap with lumpy revenue, any single quarter can swing the stock sharply, so the path of the second-half order book is the catalyst that matters most.

Peer Cohorts (Per Segment, With Filing Citations)

Power Solutions International (consolidated) (reported)

Methodology Note

Fundamentals sourced from SEC EDGAR filings. Current price from Databento. The priced-in inversion and valuation x-ray are computed by the boothcheck engine; narrative composed by AI from the structured data.

View the full interactive PSIX report on boothcheck